Beyoncé Sued Over "Formation" Single

She is being accused of using another artist's voice without permission.

Beyoncé is no stranger to dealing with legal battles. The singer-songwriter recently faced a lawsuit from a filmmaker who alleged that her album Lemonade stole images from one of his films; however, the case was eventually thrown out of court last fall when a judge dismissed the charges. Now, she's facing another lawsuit, this time regarding her hit single "Formation."

The song and video, which certainly paid homage to New Orleans culture, featured the voice of the late Anthony Barré, AKA Messy Mya – a former New Orleans-based social media star, comedian, and rapper who was killed in 2010, at only 22 years old. But now the New Orleans Advocate reports that Messy's sister, Angel Barré, filed a lawsuit on Monday for $20 million in damages and royalties.

According to The Washington Post, the Barré family is alleging that Beyoncé didn't have permission to use Messy Mya's voice in her song.

In an official statement, Angel claims that Beyoncé made use of Mya's "voice, performance and words from his copyrighted works to create the tone, mood, setting and location of the New Orleans-themed 'Formation' video and audio recordings." However, others have made the argument that by including Mya's voice in her work, Beyoncé is ensuring that his legacy – and his death – isn't forgotten.

It remains to be seen whether or not Angel's lawsuit against Beyoncé will hold in court. As The New Orleans Advocate points out, there is a one-year statute of limitations for most civil claims in the federal court.